Insomnia
by xxurielxx
Summary: Alfred's life wasn't going well when a strange man on the third floor of a cafe says he can give him a better life. Alfred accepts not realizing the cost may be too great. Summary fail, RusAme, Magic and stuff implied, OOC-ness.
1. Chapter 1

**Warnings: strong language, violence/abuse, character death, magic, smoking, drinking, implied sex, emo-ness, OOC-ness to the extreme, OCs**

**I'll try to update either once every two weeks or once a month. Reviews are nice~ I may not continue this...**

Matthew stood patiently in front of the apartment's door. His gloved hands were stuffed inside his oversized red coat, and snow clung to his light blond hair, turning it a near white. One maple leaf backpack was slung over his right shoulder, and another blue and white bag was beginning to slide off his left. With a trembling breath, he knocked twice more on the dark green door. His knocking was soft and timid, but it had been fifteen minutes already. Alfred should have heard him by then.

He leaned down and unearthed the welcome mat from underneath a small pile of fresh snow. The blue and white bag landed in the slush, but he didn't notice as he fished around on the ground. Quickly, his hand made contact with a frozen spare key, and after a moment of fighting with the lock, he let himself inside his brother's apartment. He flipped the nearest light switch on and tossed his two bags off to the side, near the couch.

Alfred was a surprisingly neat person, and he kept his place in an orderly fashion. The walls of the whole apartment remained a generic eggshell white, and even the beige carpets had their 'new house' brightness to them. A worn tan couch was pressed up against the wall, and a newish red blanket was folded and hanging over the back. On either side of the couch were end tables with lamps, and across from the couch on the other wall was a small flat screen television. The television was surrounded by a neat yet tiny entertainment system with minimal DVDs, CDs, and movies. The room was neat but barren because of Alfred's 'two part time jobs to pay just the bills' budget.

"Alfred!" Matthew called, walking from the living room to the kitchen. He found his brother sitting at his two person table, staring blankly into a bowl of cereal. "Alfred, are you okay?" he asked, placing his hand on the others shoulder. He felt Alfred's grumble through his back, and he pulled his twin back. The others normally bright blue eyes were unfocused and dull. "Al?" Matthew mumbled, worried.

Alfred blinked, groaned once more, and abruptly stood. "I'm alright, Mattie." he grumbled, cracking his neck to the left. His eyes went over his nearly empty kitchen, and he sighed as he snatched up his bowl of cereal. "How ya doing?" he asked, taking the bowl to the sink.

Matthew flinched as the faucet came to life, and for a moment, he watched as Alfred drained the bowl of milk and tossed out the soggy cereal. He shifted awkwardly from side-to-side as Alfred dumped dish soap into the bowl and began scrubbing. He didn't answer until Alfred looked up from his dishes with an expecting look. "I'm great, Al." he said, truthfully.

"And that ass you call your boyfriend?" Alfred wondered, turning the water off with a snap. A small smile crept across his face when he heard Matthew's groan.

"Gilbert's fine, and he isn't an ass." he responded.

"What about work?" Alfred mumbled. "Is being a big star business man all it's cracked up to be?"

"Work's great. I got a promotion two weeks ago, and thanks to the raise, Gil and I were thinking about finally moving into a bigger place." Matthew said, smiling. His smile faltered when he saw Alfred was slightly unshaven with bluish bags under his eyes. "Are you alright?"

Alfred dried his hands and left the dish out to dry. He looked up at Matthew, knowing he looked as exhausted as he felt. "You only come around once every few months, Mattie. I don't want to waste our time by telling you about my boring life." he laughed, dryly. "Did you bring a movie or something? I don't have much here, but what I do have is pretty sweet." he said, ignoring the look the other was giving him.

"Yeah, I brought a movie, but still, tell me what's wrong."

Alfred walked past him without a sideways glance. "What did you bring? It's not some French shit, right? God knows they can't make movies to save their lives." he said, turning on his television.

"Al, we need to talk." Matthew insisted.

"I have some popcorn if you want to make some. It's movie theater styled, so it's really good."

"Al-"

"Where's that movie, Mattie? We can't get start 'till we have the movie." Alfred growled.

"Alfred!" Matthew snapped, slamming his fist down on the table. "Tell me what the hell is wrong. I'm your brother; you know you can tell me anything without me judging you. Just tell me what has you so...so...so much like a zombie. Al, I've never seen you so out of it, and I'm worried. Even Gil noticed you weren't yourself the last time you visited us, and that was six months ago!" he said, tears pricking at his bluish purple eyes.

Alfred slowly turned to face Matthew, and he sighed. "You want to know what's wrong? I have two jobs, but I can barely afford the rent to this shit hole. I haven't had a single day off since you visited last, and my bosses are such dicks that work me like a horse. I'm on call twenty-four seven, and I haven't been able to get a full night of sleep without dreaming about asshole customers and bosses. And do you know whats the worse thing? I think my neighbor fucking died, but no one's done anything about it! There's a weird smell coming through the wall that smells just like rotting flesh." he yelled, clenching his fists.

"Al, I-"

"You what? Feel sorry for me? Want to help me? There's nothing either you or I can do! I barely graduated from high school and can't afford to go to college. There is no way I can get a better job, a better house, or a better life. My life is in the garbage, and all I can do is hope I go down painlessly while listening to whatever shit is playing on the radio. Now sit down and shut up so we can watch this fucking movie." he snapped. "If you want popcorn make it yourself." He fell onto his couch, pulled his blanket over his shoulders, and left Matthew to put the movie in the player.

For a moment, Matthew was shell shocked, but once he recovered, he went and popped some corn before putting in the movie he had brought with him. He knew from Alfred's outburst there would be no safe way to bring up the topic once more. All he could do for the rest of his trip was play ignorant and try to ignore the strange smell drifting into the apartment.

XXXXXX

Matthew left later the next day.

Alfred had seen him off with a pleasant smile, but the moment Matthew's foreign car was out of sight, his smile fell to a cold scowl. He loved his brother to death, but it pissed him off to see the other so happy and successful. He was his twin, so wasn't he supposed to understand what he was going through? There was no way Matthew could know, and Matthew was the only one who even had a chance of understanding.

He didn't feel like going back to his apartment, so he began walking deeper into the city. Snow crunched underneath his feet, and he swore his breath froze the moment it left his mouth. Where he was going was unknown to him, but he figured he would know when he got there. He noted he was in a bad part of town, and the number of sex stores and strip joints he passed couldn't be counted on both hands- there were too many. Every person he passed either gave him a flirty look or glared at him like he was Satan (or the cops, which ever was worse in that part of town). Even the alleyways seemed to scream 'you really shouldn't be here'.

He had just decided to turn around when he saw the building. It stood four stories tall; the top three were grey with all the rectangular windows covered by blankets or curtains. The bottom story looked similar, but most of the front wall consisted of large windows covered by thin purple sheets with a door between the windows. Light was just barely visible from the other side of the sheets, and they made the words painted on the glass stand out.

"'Cafe Insomnia', huh?" Alfred read, raising an eyebrow. Silently, he wondered if it was just another sexed up building living in fear of the cops, or was it an actual cafe? Surely, hookers needed their mid-afternoon latte like your everyday business man, too. He looked over his shoulder to make sure no one saw him as he pulled open the door. A bell rang as the door swung, and automatically, his eyes were invaded by a bright white light.

The walls of the cafe were a light green with matching dark brown and green tiled flooring. The left wall was a bar section with tall stools, and the right side of the place were small round tables with steel chairs around them. The front of the room was a large counter with coffee and latte related things behind a decorative glass. To the right of the counter was a flight of stairs, and behind the counter were double swinging doors. Basically, it looked like your everyday cafe. There were even scantly dressed patrons drinking from green and gold mugs.

Blinking back his surprise, Alfred walked to the counter and looked up at the menu boards on the wall. All the words were hand written in perfect script. There was a wide variety of things to order, including small pastries and breads.

Suddenly, the double doors swung out, and a man hurried behind the counter. "Welcome to Insomnia. How may I be helping you this evening?" he asked, smiling. The man was a bit shorter than Alfred, and he had a very lean frame. His eyes were a bright blue that contrasted greatly with his brown hair. On his white dress shirt was a name tag reading 'Toris'.

Alfred smiled a bit and sighed. "Do you have anything that makes your life generally better?" he asked, leaning against the counter.

Toris nervously looked towards the stairs and glanced back at Alfred. He gulped and bit his bottom lip. "Follow me." he said, aiming for the stairs.

Uncertainly, Alfred followed a few steps behind the nervous man. When they reached the top of the stairs, they turned and climbed yet another flight of stairs. From the short few glances of the second floor, Alfred could tell it was a living area with several couches and a large television. He thought he saw an open door with a bed inside, but he couldn't be sure. He was whisked away too quickly to confirm what he thought he saw.

The stairs ended in a door much like the entrance to the cafe. Toris knocked on it softly. "Master Braginski, you have a customer." There was a moment of silence before he turned to Alfred. "You may go in now." he mumbled, stepping aside on the stair.

Alfred stepped past him, a sinking feeling settling in his stomach. He grabbed the door knob, turned it, and push the door open. The room on the other side was the same size as the cafe only it was filing cabinets up to the ceiling on either side of the walls. The very back wall was yet another flight of stairs, but it, too, was surrounded by cabinets. In the very center of the room was a large arm chair, and sitting in the chair was a man.

The man was tall with both long legs and a long torso. His shoulders were wide while his waist was lean and appealing. He had silvery blond hair with a very boyish style. His nose was on the larger side, but it added to the man overall charm. The final thing Alfred noticed were his inhumanly purple eyes. He was so absorbed by the man's eyes that he didn't realize the door had shut behind him and was locked.

"Good evening." he greeted with a sickeningly sweet smile.

Words left him, but he managed a nod. It wasn't much of a greeting, but it was better than blurting out nonsense.

The man continued to smile, but it looked plastic and practiced. "You want something from me, da?" It was phrased as an question, but it was delivered as a demand.

"I. Uh. Who are you?" Alfred stammered.

A crease slightly appeared in the pale skin between the man's eyes- a sign of annoyance, but that creepy ass smile remained. "You will not answer a question with a question. It is not polite. However, I suppose I could answer your question." he said. "My name is Ivan Braginski."

"I'm Alfred Jones."

"Now, what do you want from me?" Ivan said as if he hadn't heard the others introduction.

Alfred shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "I don't think I need anything." he lied.

"I didn't ask what you need. What do you want?" he growled, his smile falling just the slightest. "Toris wouldn't have brought you here unless he knew you wanted something from me. Now, tell me."

"Well, I jokingly told him I wanted a new life, but there isn't much anyone can do about that." Alfred shrugged. A cold shiver ran down his spine when Ivan's smile grew once more.

"Tell me about yourself. What kind of life do you lead?" Ivan purred, turning his head just the slightest.

"It's not much of a life, really. I work part time at Wal-Mart and McDonald's, and between the two, I get about twenty hours of work each week. I have just enough money to pay the rent and feed myself, but that's about it. My heat's about to go out, but I won't be able to pay for it for at least another two weeks." he sighed. He looked up to see if the other was bored yet, but Ivan was still giving him the same look. If anything, it was a prompt to keep going. "I don't get out much; I'm too busy. I don't have any family in the city, so it gets really lonely around here. I'm just tired of it all." he said, shrugging once more. "That's my story. It sucks, I know, but still, it's the only one I have."

Ivan was silent for a moment before abruptly standing. He stood a good three inches taller than Alfred, and it was slightly intimidating. "I can make your life better, Alfred." he announced.

Alfred's blue eyes went wide, but then he let out a broken laugh. "Dude, getting my hopes up is a dick move." He turned around and grabbed the door handle, but it wouldn't open. "You locked me inside here?" he growled.

"I'm not 'getting your hopes up'." Ivan shrugged. "I can make your life better as it is my job." He went to the back of the room and opened one of the many filing cabinets while Alfred turned once more to watch him. He picked up a piece of snow white paper and a pen from the cabinet and shut it silently. In a few long strides, he stood in front of Alfred and held the items out to him. "You will quite your other jobs and begin working here. I will pay you twice what you make at both, and you can move into this building for cheaper rent. All you have to do is sign this contract." he promised.

His hands seemed to move on their own as Alfred snatched away the paper. He read the paper over twice. It was all there in black and white. "Are you serious?" he wondered, staring at the paper as if it was holy.

"Just sign on the line." Ivan replied. He placed the pen in Alfred's hand, and their skin made contact for just a second.

A cold jolt shot through Alfred's arm, and he jerked away with wide eyes. The pen fell to the ground with a small thunk, but for the moment, he didn't notice. He was completely focused on whatever just happened.

Ivan's smile fell, and his gaze shifted to the pen. "Pick it up and sign the paper." he growled, turning around. He went to the chair and sat down, watching Alfred as he picked up the pen.

"Just sign it." Alfred mumbled, pressing the pen to the paper. Soon, his name was signed in blood red ink. He handed it to Ivan with a small smile. "It will take two weeks for me to officially stop working at Wal-Mart and McDonald's if I put in my warning tomorrow." he said, his smile slowly growing.

Ivan hummed and stood, looking over the paper.

"Really, Ivan, thank you so-" His words were caught as a hand wrapped around his throat. Fear rose up in his stomach when he saw the violent look in the others amethyst eyes. Alfred's hands flew up to his throat, trying to pry the fingers off his skin. Little cold sensations were shooting through his body, making him lose control over certain limbs for a few moments before regaining control again. He struggled the best he could, but his body surrendered on its own.

Black spots began to invade his vision, but he couldn't look away from those hypnotizing eyes. He felt himself slipping away, but just as he knew he was fading, the grip on his throat disappeared. He collapsed onto the ground and greedily gasped in air.

"You do not know me. You are not my friend. You do not have the right to call me by my first name. You will call me 'Master Braginski', or you will be punished severely. Do you understand me?" he growled, giving Alfred a swift and sudden kick to the ribs.

Alfred began hacking and coughing, but he managed to send the tall Russian a glare. "F-fuck you." He managed to sit up on his own, but he had to use a nearby cabinet to stand. "I'm leaving and never coming back." he growled. His knees locked when Ivan's smile turned psychotic.

"You won't be leaving, Alfred." he cooed. He gripped the American's chin and forced the younger to look into his eyes. "You won't do anything without my permission from this point." he laughed.

"Why is that?" Alfred spat, trying to make his voice sound harsh.

Ivan giggled and let Alfred's chin go only to wrap his arms around him in a loose hug. "Because," he whispered into his ear, "you sold me your soul."

Ivan's cold breath made a shudder run down Alfred's spine, and his breath caught in his lungs. "My soul?" he wondered, breathlessly. "That contract said nothing-"

"That's because you don't know how to read between the lines." Ivan huffed, shoving him away. He laughed once more when Alfred fell to the ground. "I own you- body and soul. I suggest you don't forget that."


	2. Chapter 2

**The warnings are the same as last time. I do not own Hetalia! I will update the first or second of every month so long as I have access to the web. In this exciting chapter you learn a bit (but not much) about the lovely little cafe Alfred wandered into and who (or what) works there. :) Enjoy**

After his interaction with Ivan, Alfred was roughly forced out of the strange room. He stared blankly at the shut door as he stood on the second to final step. His head was swimming with questions- most of them went back to 'what the hell just happened?'. He wanted to just leave and never come back, but he felt weird. There was a tingling feeling rising up from his feet, and his stomach churned with uncertainty. Something in the back of his mind told him not to take Ivan's warning not to leave lightly, and even he realized it would be stupid not to listen to that something.

"Are you alright?"

Alfred nearly fell back at Toris' sudden appearance.

The brunette had a grim look on his young face, but he offered Alfred a weak smile none the less. "Please, follow me." he sighed, turning. He showed Alfred down the stairs to the second floor. Here he sat Alfred down with another smile before disappearing into a bedroom.

The room Alfred sat in was small, but the space was well used. Three large couches surrounded a high-tech television. There were an assortment of living plant in the room as decoration, and in the corner were bookshelves filled with books, CDs, and DVDs. Only a small handful of books were in English; the rest were in strange languages. Even some of the movies were in a foreign language. There were three doors that led out of the room. One was the bedroom Toris went into, another was a bathroom, and the final door was shut.

Alfred sighed and sunk deeper into the couch. It had to be around ten at night, and he was feeling it.

"Excuse me?"

Alfred jumped and shot Toris a tired glare.

A small blush took over Toris' face, and he awkwardly scratched the back of his head. "I've prepared your room." he mumbled, looking away. "It's right here, if you want to go to sleep."

"Right." Alfred sighed, standing. He shuffled past the smaller man and looked around his new room. The wooden floors were well kept, and the light green paint on the walls looked fresh. The bed was a double and had thick comforters and an assortment of pillows. A nightstand was at either side of the bed, and each had a green lamp on top. There was a window, but it was covered by a thick dark green blanket. In front of the window was a short dresser, and to its left was a larger wardrobe.

"I would suggest you use all the blankets at night. Master Braginski turns down the temperature while he, um, 'sleeps' to save energy. Oh, I'm Toris, by the way." Toris introduced, trying to be as friendly as possible.

"Alfred." he replied after a moment of silence. He looked around the room- his room- and turned back to Toris. "Why did you take me to him?" he asked, point blank.

Toris shifted his weight back and a nervous stutter escaped him. "It- it's part of my contract with Master Braginski. Whenever I find someone who could use his...services...I'm to take them to him. If I don't, I'm punished."

"His services? What the fuck are his services? Enslaving people?" Alfred snapped, making Toris flinch back.

"Not necessarily. He grants people their wishes, but everything comes at a cost. When the wisher reads the contract, their blinded by their selfishness to see the consequences. More often than not, the risk overtakes the reward, but I think you know that, Alfred." Toris sighed. "You should go to sleep. You start working tomorrow." With that, Toris shut the door behind him, and a little click echoed through the room.

Alfred checked the door. It was locked. He went to the window. It was nailed shut. If there was any escape from that hell, Alfred would have found it. He even tore apart the wardrobe and dresser, but there was only a handful of clothes inside of them. In the end, he simply surrendered and crawled into the bed for an uneasy sleep haunted by dreams of amethyst eyed demons.

XXXXXX

When Alfred's eyes opened, he was surrounded in darkness. His body was warm and comfortable, but his nose was freezing from not being covered during the night. Blindly, he reached out and clicked on the nearest lamp, and next he searched the bed for his glasses. "Damn things." he swore, still searching. They had fallen off in his sleep, and unknowingly to him, they were sitting on the floor near the opposite dresser. "Damn it all." he swore again.

"Alfred?"

"Mother of Christ!" he yelped. "Toris, stop sneaking up on me all ninja like. It's not fucking cool."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Toris mumbled. The Lithuanian watched Alfred shuffle around the bed in slight amusement. His eyes quickly fell on the American's glasses, and he took the short few steps to pick them up for him. "Here." he said, slipping the frame in their proper place. Toris chuckled quietly as Alfred blinked several times like an owl, trying to readjust to seeing.

"Thanks." Alfred yawned. He looked around, and depression crashed down on him as he remembered everything from the day before. Self-pity welled up inside him, but he forced it down. Whether he liked it or not, he was in the situation by his own folly. If he hadn't complained or went for a walk, he would be in his small apartment living an average life. Instead, he was in some freak's cafe. "What time is it?" he grumbled.

"A little past nine in the morning." Toris said, stifling a yawn. "The cafe doesn't open until five in the afternoon, but Master Braginski informed me you won't be working in the cafe. He said you're going to be his...personal...assistant."

It was at this time Alfred noticed Toris was still in his pajamas. There was only a second delay for him to realize Toris wouldn't normally be up at nine in the morning. "His assistant?" he wondered, not willing to bring up why Toris was up.

Toris smiled sadly and didn't answer. "Please come downstairs when you're ready. There are clothes in the dresser, and we set somethings out for you in the bathroom." he said, nodding slight. He left seconds later.

"'We'?" Alfred wondered. Ivan really didn't seem like the kind of person that would be walking around trying to make the new guy feel welcome. He pushed the thought away and went to the dresser. All the clothes were too long for him, but none the less, he pulled on a white dress shirt and kept his own jeans. The shirt smelled like bread, making Alfred's stomach growl. After a short stop in the bathroom (where an assortment of items were laid out for him), he made his way down the stairs to the cafe.

All the chairs in the cafe were upside down on the tables, and a man was scrubbing the floors with a wet mop. The man was a little bit shorter than Toris, and he had a lean frame. His blond hair was shoulder length with a pale pink clip keeping strands out of his face. He wore a pink shirt and black jeans with matching shoes. Alfred couldn't see his eyes until he straightened up and looked him over- his eyes were a deep green.

The man smiled and walked over to Alfred with gusto. He got right into Alfred's face as he examined him, and he even ran his hands through Alfred's hair. The man nodded in approval before pointing at his name tag.

"Feliks?" Alfred read, raising an eyebrow at the weird man.

Feliks nodded quickly and one hand on a hip. He waved Alfred to the kitchen where sweet smells were rising. He followed closely behind Alfred.

"I'm Alfred." he greeted.

Feliks smiled but said nothing in response. He led Alfred to the very back of the large kitchen where a large fridge sat. Feliks pulled the double doors open and beamed. Inside were many different meats, vegetables, fruits, and drinks. Next to the fridge was a rack filled with fresh bread. Feliks did a hand gesture that said 'go at it'.

"Thanks." Alfred smiled.

Feliks returned the smile and waved goodbye as he left the room.

Alfred watched him leave and scanned the fridge for something small. He settled on an apple, orange, and small loaf of bread. He shut the doors and leaned against a counter as he ate his food. All around him smelled like a bakery- pastries and bread were in the ovens as he stood there. He took note of many different bags of coffee beans, and near was a large sink filled with dirty mugs. "The place is an actual business." Alfred mumbled, amazed.

He shoved the rest of his food into his mouth and went back to Feliks. "Hey, what am I-"

The door swung open before he could finish his question. Standing in the doorway was a short Asian man with a stern face and long brown hair pulled into a pony tail. "It took me forever to find this place, aru." he hissed, stomping into the cafe. "Is this the right place?"

Feliks nodded slowly and looked to Alfred. He rolled his eyes when all he received a blank look. Feliks stuck his finger in the air and pointed up towards the second floor.

"Go to the second floor? No, the third?"

Feliks nodded.

"I don't have all day, aru." the Asian man spat.

Alfred glared at the shorter man but forced a smile. "Follow me." he said, faking pleasantness. Years of customer service had taught him to pretend he was happy no matter what or risk your job, but as he thought about it, he didn't want this job. He climbed the stairs slowly, much to the disdain of the man following him. They came to a stop at the door on the third floor. Alfred held his breath and knocked three times. "Ivan?" he called.

"Come." came the command from the other side.

Alfred did as he was told and opened the door. He let the Asian man step in first, but just as he was shutting the door, Ivan stopped him.

"You are my assistant. You are to remain with me at all times during business." Ivan said, calmly. He was wearing his shit eating smile, but the man didn't seem put off by it like Alfred. He didn't seem to take comfort in it either. "Who are you?" Ivan asked the man.

"I am Yao, the owner of one of the finest Chinese restaurants in this state- Dining With Dragons, aru." Yao boasted, puffing out his thin chest.

"Never heard of it." Alfred mumbled, and he knew his Chinese food, too.

Yao's eyes went wide in embarrassment, but he kept face despite the blush taking over his face. "That is why I am here. I want my restaurant to become the most talked about restaurant in this state. I assume this will be no problem for you." he said, looking to Ivan.

"Of course not." Ivan insured. He stood and stepped to the nearest cabinet. He opened it and pulled out a piece of paper and a pen. He handed it over with a smile.

Yao snatched it out of his hands and signed it without looking it over. He handed it back with an over confident smirk. "And this will work?"

"No one will be able to stop thinking about you or your restaurant." Ivan promised with an amused tone.

"Good. I will see myself out." Yao nodded. He left without another word or a glance back.

"What an ass." Alfred grumbled. He shot Ivan a glare before turning to leave himself.

"Wait a moment, Alfred." Ivan called in a playful tone. "Come here for a second."

Alfred swore under his breath and went to stand in front of the taller man. He wasn't expecting the blow to the head, but once he was on the floor, he knew to curl up into a ball. It helped lower the pain from the two swift blows to his back, brought by Ivan's military boots. He swore again, coughing and glared up at his employer.

Ivan giggled, innocently. "I told you not to call me by my first name, but you didn't listen. Maybe now you will know better, da?" he purred, offering out his gloved hand.

Alfred had the feeling taking the Russian's hand wasn't an option, so he slowly uncurled and allowed himself to be pulled up abruptly. He wasn't ready for Ivan's strength, and he lost his balance upon standing and fell into Ivan's chest.

The larger man didn't even bat an eye. Instead, he wrapped one arm around Alfred's thin waist and used his other hand to tilt the American's head up towards him. He admired the blond's beauty for a moment before leaning in and placing a kiss on the others lips. It wasn't a loving or possessive gesture- he only did it because the opportunity was there. That and he wanted to see the younger squirm a bit.

Alfred's mind had gone blank save the thought 'this freak's kissing me!'. It was only when the others lip were removed that he pushed himself away and ran out of the room. He didn't wait to see if Ivan was following him; he simply dived into his room and buried himself underneath the covers. He really hated the place.

XXXXXX

Alfred laid out on the couch with one arm hanging limply off the edge of the couch, and the other was propped up by the back. In his hand was a remote control, and occasionally, his thumb would press a button and change the channel. The American was bored beyond belief simply because there was nothing to do. Feliks and Toris were downstairs working the cafe, and Toris had said Alfred wasn't to help unless asked by Ivan. The Lithuanian suggested he went and asked Ivan directly, but the idea was quickly shot down.

The only thing left to do was channel surf.

"A better life my ass." he growled after turning the channel from an awful comedy to the local news. There was a yellow banner flashing at the bottom of the screen, claiming breaking news. The screen was showing the live feed of a restaurant.

"We are filming live from the scene of one of the most horrendous crimes this city has ever seen." a blond woman said, walking into the shot. There was a grim look on her young face as she looked around her. "What you are seeing behind me is the local police storming the Chinese restaurant named Dining With Dragons."

Alfred sat up straighter once hearing the name. He automatically thought of Ivan's customer from earlier that day, and something made his stomach churn.

The screen slowly zoomed in towards the front of the small restaurant. It showed a large policeman dragging out a shorter Asian man who was kicking and yelling. "Let me go, aru! I did nothing." he belted, struggling in the man's grip. His wide amber eyes went right to the camera. "Help me, aru! I did nothing wrong. I've been framed, aru." he screamed, but within moments, he was pulled away towards a police cruiser.

The blond newscaster was focused on once more. "Yao Wang is the owner of Dining With Dragons, and his evening, Mr. Wang has been arrested for the premeditated homicide of ten locals including an eight year old girl. Tests have shown that Mr. Wang has been putting poison into the food he serves his customers, and prolonged exposure leads to sudden cardiac arrest. If you or anyone you know has eaten at Dining With Dragons go to the nearest hospital right away. It may just save your life. Without a doubt, this will be the most talked about tragedy in this city, and it won't soon be forgotten."

Alfred quickly snapped the television off; a cold sweat was slipping down his forehead. "But. He was. I don't." he mumbled, trembling.

"It was his payment."

Alfred spun around on the couch and found himself staring at both Toris and Feliks. "His payment?" Alfred wondered.

Feliks nodded and gave Toris a grim look.

"Mr. Wang asked for Ivan to make his restaurant the most talked in the state, and now it will be." Toris sighed. "Did you really think Master Braginski simply grants people their wishes without any sort of payment? Usually, what he takes is more than what the reward is worth, but no one ever notices until it's too late. Us three," he motioned to Feliks and Alfred, "are no exceptions."

"Why? What did you two want?" Alfred asked.

Toris spoke quietly with an ashamed look on his face. "I wanted to escape my parents. It was twenty years before this country went through its civil war. My parents were trying to marry me off to a woman I didn't love, and suddenly, Master Braginski showed up with a group of Russian travelers. He promised to free me from my family and that woman; I accepted without second thought. The next thing I knew, I was his slave."

It took a moment for the words to sink into Alfred's mind. "Twenty years before the Civil War? How is that possible? And what about Feliks?" he wondered.

Toris spoke once more. "This place is magic. Something about this place stops the aging of who ever lives in it. It isn't the building itself, though. It's only one part of it that gives it its magical properties, but only Master Braginski knows what it is. For all we know it's the scarf he wears, or it could even be a small nail we look at everyday. If we're away from this place for too long, we die suddenly." His words were jumbled and spoken quickly, and his face was turning green.

"And Feliks?" Alfred demanded.

"He-" Toris began.

"Why doesn't he tell me?" Alfred growled, standing.

Feliks looked down and walked up to Alfred. He carefully took the others hand in his and raised it to his lips. Nothing looked like it was there, but stitches could clearly be felt, keeping the mans mouth shut.

Alfred quickly tore away, dropping his hand from the sewn mouth, but he nearly fell during the motion. His heart rate shot up to dangerous levels, and his hands twitched ever the slightest. "Wh-what happened?" he stammered, blue eyes wide in disgust and horror.

"Ivan happened." Toris hissed in a bitter tone. The moment his words escaped him, he cringed as if Ivan was going to appear and punish him, but when a moment of silence passed Toris seemed to relax just the slightest. "It wasn't too long ago-only a few years- that Feliks and I met in a local market. Without Master Braginski's knowledge, we began to see each other, but after two years, he found out. He demanded we stopped seeing one another, but Feliks wouldn't have it. Instead, he used his wish to be with me forever. Master Braginski can't deny a person a wish, but he made the payment something he saw tolerable. He took Feliks' voice away." he mumbled, his eyes beginning to glisten.

Feliks placed his hand on the smaller man's shoulder and offered a small smile.

Toris smiled back shakingly. His eyes returned to Alfred. "Alfred, I suggest you do what ever Master Braginski says. I can't say what will happen if you don't. The man's a monster."


End file.
